Impact is the Key

Written on 8-5-21.

        I am attending a Graves Golf Single Plane Workshop, and they are talking about how what they teach is a system.  Herman (not his real name) was telling me today that he is trying to keep it simple with his daughter by telling her to simply turn behind the ball and then get the club face square at impact.  I agree that keeping it simple helps with tips like that, but that is not a system.  Since I started playing in 1999, I could see with other golfers and myself that there was no system with conventional golf instruction.  So many different ways of swinging a golf club and many more ways of teaching the golf swing.  It differs from volleyball very much in that way.  

Herman agreed that there are millions of different kinds of swings, just like there are millions of different people who play golf, but Graves Golf has a system that uses the biomechanics based on Moe’s swing.  I am not trying to figure out my own swing right now.  I am doing my best to match the model, just like Shot Doctor’s Successful Six for shooting a basketball.  

About Herman’s advice to his daughter, will she...

be able to feel what she does as she swings that way?  How do the feels and the “reals” match up?  I wonder how far should she turn back in her back swing?  How does she square up the clubface at impact?  So many variables in that simple tip.  I understand about keeping it simple, though.  I have no real room to talk about this.  She is going to Western New Mexico on a scholarship, and I can barely break 100 right now.  Something is working for her!

Tonight’s workshop is to promote a sale for a year of video instruction and various other things for $495.00.  It’s tempting, but I don’t have $495.00 right now, so I will pass on this offer and watch the webinar for something that I may not have heard before.

Here’s the first one: if I want to hit lower drives, I need to put my ball position back a bit.  Another one is to keep the trail foot on the ground is to realize it’s a cause and effect thing.  To keep the foot down, you need to keep the lead knee flexed and increase the crease on the pants on the trail leg.  Highwater pants should be able to touch the ground.  The bending of the lead knee will cause the trail foot to stay on the ground.  Tim is recommending to do the bump drill?  

A third tip I picked up is that I should keep my trail arm closer to my body on the backswing, too.  Trent White evaluated a video of somebody named Shane’s swing, and I saw the same thing on my video recordings.  If I used a head cover and hold it in my trail armpit, it should come out during position five.  That would be a great drill for me to use.  

The lead knee should go towards the trail toe on the back swing.  I also need to let the trail arm release and allow it to go higher than the lead arm in the follow through.  They are saying it should feel like you are hanging on to onto a rope during a tug-of-war, and I remember an image of Todd doing that in his book.

I have plenty to work on without getting the membership.  

Written on 8-12-21.

I am writing this on the day that James passed his first test for his new job!  He will take the second, more difficult one on the 20th.  I just texted him, and he replied that he passed the SIE today, and he has the “7” next week.  We are so happy and proud.  I know he has worked hard, and he told us that Casey has also helped to keep him motivated.  Good for her.  A true friend.  

Danielle is on a break between “rolls,” and she just got back from visiting the Grand Tetons by herself.  So brave to travel alone, and I really don’t like it (as her father), but what’s a father to do?  She’s a tough, smart girl, though, and she is back in Boise now.  She did send an amazing video and some gorgeous photos.

Also, ShyShay played in her first volleyball scrimmage for Herndon High School as a freshman.  She was nervous to play for a high school team, but she did well, of course.  So glad her ankle has fully healed after landing badly during club ball.  She’s going to do really well, I am betting.

On to golf…

I went to the range today after being inspired by an energetic guy named Tom Saguto on YouTube.  He is incredibly excited about golf (nearly hyper), and he has a simple and powerful swing.  He has his own golf school, too.  Here is my thinking after watching his swing and going to the range today.

It was so simple (his swing).  It was so powerful.  It was taking a consistent divot after the golf ball, the way it should.  I tried to emulate some aspects of it at the range, and I could see the advantages, but let me put into words some of the differences from the single plane, in my opinion.  

First, the way I did it, I was still using a single plane.  My hands were still pointing at the ball, and they were straight, not hanging down like conventional golf.  I still had the “rod,” but my “claw” was a little more on top of the club.  Tom’s swing didn’t do that.  

Second, my lead knee was bent at address.  Tom did do this, but I am thinking he was doing that for effect in order to show how to compress the ball and make the divots.  Earlier this week, I was practicing starting at the impact position just like that with my lead knee bent at address.  It’s worked before, and I noticed that I was matching the “Moe Norman” model the most when I did that, but it just didn’t seem kosher to do this when I actually played, because not enough power could be stored up in the back swing the way I was doing it.  Well, not today.  I had plenty of power, definitely more than what I had when I played yesterday.  Should I start playing like this?  With my lead knee already bent like it’s at impact?  I am seriously considering it after this session.

I still had some duffs and some topped shots, but when I did it correctly (whatever that means), I had great success.  I know that I am contradicting what I have just said in the previous entry, but I want to do what’s simpler and make it my own.  I want to wind up and hit the ball hard, like I do when I hit the impact bag.  The single plane has provided me the set-up to be able to do this, but Tom Saguto has given me permission to turn back and turn through with authority.  I was hitting beautiful shots, but the proof will be in the scoring.  It always is.   

The YouTube video was called GOLF’S CONTACT SECRET: Hit the Golf Ball FIRST and Take a Divot AFTER When You Do this Wrist Move.  I have been trying to make beautiful divots after the ball a lot lately.  Not to be repetitive, but the single plane swing has gotten me set up to have such a repeatable motion, and Tom’s video gave me permission to let it rip.

Tom was also talking about forward shaft lean just like Todd and Tim Graves always do.  The trick is to get to impact and make a divot after the ball every time with forward lean in the shaft.  I plan on going to go after every ball and making a divot with my irons from now on.  To me, it is binary.  I am either doing that with my irons (especially the short irons), or I am not.

Back to Tom Saguto; he was so animated.  He said he loved the sound a well struck, crispy, iron makes when it compresses the ball (what golfer doesn’t?).  He said it makes a powuushhhhh sound, and he motioned with his fingers by opening them up like a blooming flower.  I recognize that sound, too, and I want to do it over and over again.

Until next time…